Succumbing
by ANBUShizuka
Summary: She wanders the world, sword in hand. It whispers to her. She listens. But dismisses it and wields it for the pleasure of battle. But, upon meeting a man and his daughters, she begins to wonder if it is possible to change her nature. Rated T for language


_A/N: Saw a pic on google and got inspired because it made me wonder. Just a one-shot for now. Might make it multi-chapter if the response is good. Enjoy this possible insight into Unohana-taicho's past. _

_Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach. That is all._

[X]

Bare feet padded quietly along the dirt road as the cool wind whipped through raven-colored tresses. Solitude was a blessing for the woman as she continued her trek; her previous run-in with other people had ended rather badly. And she still had yet to clean the dried blood from her chest and face. The black yukata she had donned was frayed from the numerous battles and days on end of wear and tear that it endured. Her once white sash was stained red from the blood of herself and enemies alike. Thunder rolled in the distance and the woman suppressed the urge to roll her eyes. She simply muttered, "Wonderful."

Rain began to patter on the dry earth as she entered the town. It was small and run-down. '_One of the worse districts in Rukongai..._' thought the woman. She glanced around, noting that everyone was indoors or, otherwise, hiding. Heading down the main road, the raven-haired female took in her surroundings carefully. Suddenly, a man stepped out, blade drawn. "So," she smirked, "you want a fight?"

"I want you outta this town. I got kids t'protect." His dark blue eyes bordered on indigo as they peered at the young woman from beneath silver-colored bangs. He growled, "Well, go on, get outta here. I don't like the looks a'you." Taking one step forward, he issued another warning, "I'm tellin' you to leave now."

Drawing her own blade, the blue-eyed woman sneered, "You have one chance right now to run away." Her grin grew sadistic as she finished, "Or else I'm going to bathe in your blood, old man."

Without another word, the man rushed forward; his speed for being so old, apparently, was quite impressive and the strength behind the swing of his sword arm was considerable. A grunt slipped past the woman's lips as their weapons made contact, her grin growing wider as the fight went on. Finally exasperated with his half-hearted attacks, the female warrior flung him back with a simple flick of her blade. Cerulean eyes narrowed angrily, the man spat, "What? Getting tired?"

Anger suddenly filled her devestatingly pretty face as she shouted, "Yeah, tired of your bullshit! You can fight better than that, right? I'm getting bored!" She pointed her blade at his chest, threatening, "Pick up the slack, old man, or else." The girl drew back, hiking the blade over her shoulder when she saw he wasn't getting up. A moment passed as she thought about the beginning of the fight and she turned. "Fine. Later, old man."

"What is your name? Why did you show me mercy?" His silver hair was darkened by the rain and it clung to his forehead messily.

"You said you had kids to protect, right? Then why go get yourself killed, stupid?" sneered the female. She continued walking away as she shouted over her shoulder, "The name's Retsu. And that's all you need to know."

"Retsu-san! Retsu-san, wait!" cried a high-pitched voice.

Said woman halted and looked back, confused at the command. "What the-" Two children- little girls from the looks of them- came running out of a nearby shack. One ran to the exhausted man; her hair was short and the color of dark yellow gold. She appeared much younger than her counterpart- the counterpart that was running right up to the sword-bearing invader. "What is it, kid?"

The child was somewhere between twelve and thirteen, by appearance and had shoulder-length silver hair. Her eyes were a dark, smoke-colored grey and were wide with a child-like innocence to them. The girl hurriedly uncovered the bundle from beneath her tattered crimson haori. "Here. You must be hungry." She presented a meager grouping of bread and cheese with an apple as well. "That's what most people are looking for that have swords." A frown marred her pretty- plain, rather humble- features. "But usually, they wear a sort of uniform..."

"Yeah, Yamamoto's gang. I know 'em. I'm kinda trying to get away from that group." Then, taking another once over of the girl, Retsu tentatively accepted the bundle of food. "Thanks."

"Thank you for showing Papa mercy. He tries to defend me and Kiyone every time someone comes through and seems to want to fight," the twelve-year-old replied. She once again broke into a smile and backed away slowly. "Thank you, again. Safe journey!" With a wave, the girl was off, red haori fluttering over her black hakama and bandaged chest.

Smiling softly, Retsu felt her heart give a shuddering thud as she took a bite of the apple. She whispered, "Thanks, kid."

[X]

Retsu finally stopped in a forest several hundred kilometers away from the village. She wandered around for a little while, searching for an old, hollowed out tree. Finally finding one, she set her weapon and the bundle of food inside and set about gathering some wood for a fire. The raven-haired woman eventually came up with an armful of sticks and twigs, making sure to keep enough to kindle the fire throughout her evening there. She sat down on a boulder just outside of her shelter and began to snap two pieces of flint together that she had knicked from a village a while back. Softly, a voice called out, _"Retsu..."_

"Who's there?" hissed the slender female. She began to reach for her blade before she felt a small pulse of energy radiate from the blade. "What.."

_"It's me. Or have you forgotten?"_ whispered the weapon.

Scowling, she growled, "No. Now what the hell do you want?"

A chuckle permeated her thoughts as her sword replied, _"Only to ask why you let that man and his children live. I've never seen such kindness from you before."_ The voice paused, giving thought to his mistress' memories and heart. _"Perhaps it isn't so strange, however. Because you used to be very sweet, except for your bursts of anger. Those were few and far-between until-"_

"That's enough out of you. Is that really all you wanted? Or do you simply enjoy tormenting me with my past?" The pale-skinned woman began to feel her heart palpitate as she recalled the tragedies that marred her childhood. She stifled a sob as she murmured, "Why can't you leave me alone?"

_"I thought that was obvious. I'm part of you, Retsu. We were meant to be together. Now, all you need to do is learn how to use me,"_ soothed the blade.

"I already know," sneered the blue-eyed girl, "I take you and swing at my opponents and spill their blood. What else is there?"

_"Foolish child."_ The voice had grown stern. _"I have more power than you can imagine. But you must master me and learn my name."_ Retsu noted, silently, that her sword had a gentle man's voice. That is, until he grew upset. Then, it became a booming, hellish growl.

"How...do I do that?" She grabbed the weapon and brought it into her lap, examining it; the firelight sparkled against the hilt, the handguard and the blade itself. In it, she saw scenes of battle and blood and utter destruction. She could see herself standing alone in the middle of the chaos, blood soaking a white haori as a serene, almost emotionless look filled her features. "That is what I can become?"

_"Yes. That and so much more. Retsu, have you not noticed that when you battle, your spiritual pressure trumps that of your opponent's and anyone else's that happens to be nearby? You can become a great warrior. But, I have another power, if you would care to learn it."_ The offer, while intriguing, was not what Retsu sought.

"What other power could I possibly need? I can destroy all that stand in my way." A scowl once again came to Retsu's face as the fire began to wane in the darkness.

_"The power to heal,"_ the voice whispered, _"can sometimes be more absolute than the power to destroy."_ Shortly after, the blade fell silent and Retsu sat staring at it in the dark of the forest.

She held it up in the moonlight, looking at it again, before sheathing it and crawling into the hollow of the tree. Curling into a ball, the girl muttered, "Dumb sword..."

[X]


End file.
